Coronavirus updates: California deaths surge; 900,000 more file for unemployment
Coronavirus deaths continue to rise sharply in the U.S. as a harrowing Wednesday saw the nation surpass 30,000 reported fatalities from COVID-19. On Thursday, nearly 3,000 more deaths nationwide were reported.
California, which has seen relatively low death and infection totals among its 40 million residents, also experienced a surge of new reported deaths.
Gov. Gavin Newsom during Wednesday’s daily news conference announced that the state has confirmed 821 fatalities from COVID-19, the disease caused by the highly contagious coronavirus, an increase of 63 from Tuesday’s tally of 758 provided by the state Department of Public Health.
A Sacramento Bee survey of individual counties’ public health departments showed at least 957 deaths as of Thursday evening, an increase of nearly 200 from two days earlier on Tuesday.
An alarming 42 new deaths were reported Wednesday in Los Angeles County, the largest single-day increase in fatalities announced there, according to its public health department. More than 400 in total have died throughout Los Angeles County.
The four-county Sacramento region’s death count also had by far its biggest one-day jump Wednesday: four more deaths were reported in Sacramento County, three in Yolo County and two in Placer County for a total of nine new deaths and 46 overall so far.
All four Sacramento County deaths came in the city of Sacramento, where 18 people have died, officials say. As of Thursday, 37 people have died in the four-county Sacramento region after one new death was reported in Placer County.
The four counties through Thursday evening have reported a combined 1,169 lab-confirmed coronavirus cases, nearly 880 of them in Sacramento County.
Worldwide, there have been more than 2.15 million confirmed coronavirus infections and close to 144,000 people have died, according to a data map maintained by Johns Hopkins University. Nearly 33,000 have died in the U.S., almost 10,000 more than the next closest country. Nearly 15,000 have died in New York state alone.
Unemployment by the numbers: 2.7 million Californians have filed
With economies virtually shut down during the coronavirus crisis, unemployment claims have skyrocketed in recent weeks to record highs across the U.S. and within California, where the stay-at-home mandate issued by Newsom on March 19 has stilted the state’s economy.
The U.S. Department of Labor on Thursday said 5.25 million Americans filed initial claims for unemployment insurance during the week that ended April 11. That figure, which is seasonally adjusted, was lower than the two prior weeks. In the last four weeks, 22 million people have filed for unemployment.
About 919,000 Californians filed initial claims last week, according to the Department of Labor report, compared with more than 1 million the previous week and another 900,000 the week before that. Those numbers are not seasonally adjusted.
Newsom on Wednesday said a total of 2.7 million Californians have formally filed for unemployment over the last four weeks.
In response, the governor signed an executive order calling for the state Employment Development Department to expand the hours of its call center, and announced that more than 1,300 employees would be reassigned to handle the increased load. The call center will now be open from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. The EDD will also establish a new website intended for gig workers and independent contractors.
The governor also announced California will be providing financial aid to undocumented immigrants amid the coronavirus pandemic, becoming the first state to do so.
Has curve flattened? Maybe, Newsom says
Newsom said early Thursday afternoon during his daily news briefing that President Donald Trump later in the evening will provide an update on plans for states to reopen their economies. Newsom said he had yet to review the president’s guidelines.
He noted 1,191 people diagnosed with the coronavirus are in ICUs, a modest increase from yesterday. But there’s been a modest decrease in overall hospitalizations, he said.
“You have successfully bent and arguably flattened the curve in the state of California,” Newsom said. “We continue to need to maintain our vigilance.”
Extra paid sick leave for food workers
Newsom during Thursday’s daily news conference said he has signed an executive order giving two weeks of supplemental sick leave to workers in the food sector.
The governor said expanded sick leave will protect not just the workers but those who come in direct or indirect contact with them.
“It’s in all of our interest that we prioritize the interest of these essential workers,” Newsom said.
Sacramento State to hold virtual graduation ceremony
California State University Sacramento will hold its spring commencement ceremonies virtually this June, university officials said Thursday.
University President Robert Nelson announced that a “virtual graduation celebration” will be held June 6 for the class of 2020, and that classes of 2020 and 2021 would be honored at next May’s in-person ceremony at Golden 1 Center, Sacramento State said in a tweet thread.
Sacramento State’s physical campus has been closed since mid-March, with classes transitioning online at that time.
UC Davis made a similar decision to hold its graduation ceremony virtually and will do so June 12. The university announced the decision last week, saying an in-person ceremony could be held sometime in December, but no official date was set.
Test appointment no-shows are wasting resources, county says
Diagnostic testing for the coronavirus is seen as a key step in continuing to flatten the pandemic’s growth curve. When Newsom earlier this week revealed his six-point “framework” for criteria needing to be met before stay-at-home restrictions can be relaxed and the economy reopened, testing was the first point listed.
But some in Sacramento County are squandering precious resources, officials said this week.
Three weeks ago, when the county opened a free, appointment-only drive-through coronavirus test site at Cal Expo as part of an expanding program run by Google sister company Verily, the goal was to test hundreds of people a day. Since then, though, nurses and doctors have seen a diminishing number of patients showing up for their appointments.
Up to 350 people can be processed every day, but on average, only about 250 people actually drive up, said Erica Havey, a registered nurse with Sacramento County who’s been collecting samples at Cal Expo. That’s even with the county and Verily overbooking by about 30 percent.
“We’re essentially wasting this precious commodity that we have,” said county spokeswoman Janna Haynes. “The more people that need to be tested that can come through here the better.”
Sacramento County residents can see if their eligible for testing by using Verily’s screening website and filling out a questionnaire, at projectbaseline.com/study/covid-19.
Local authorities urge those who make an appointment to show up for testing.
Blacks, Pacific Islanders among groups dying at disproportionate rates
Black Californians make up 6 percent of the state’s population, but represent 12 percent of those who have died from the coronavirus, according to data released Wednesday by the California Department of Public Health.
The statistics paint a bleak picture for African Americans, with data suggesting that their illnesses are being diagnosed at a rate matching their representation in the population, but with patients dying at disproportionate rates.
The situation is similar for native Hawaiians and Asian Pacific Islanders, who comprise just 0.3 percent of the California population but make up 1 percent of deaths and 2 percent of cases.
Chet Hewitt, president and CEO of Sacramento’s Sierra Health Foundation, these numbers showcase the difficulties for some groups in accessing high-quality care.
“We should stop talking about inequality because COVID-19 has thrown it completely in our face,” Hewitt told The Bee, “and we should start thinking about doing something about it during this pandemic, but just as importantly post-pandemic.”
Latest Sacramento-area numbers: More than 1,100 infected, 47 dead
The nine new deaths disclosed Wednesday and one new death reported Thursday, in Placer County, bring the four-county Sacramento area to a total of 47 who have died from COVID-19 thus far.
Sacramento County has reported 879 cases and 32 deaths, last updated Thursday morning on a new online dashboard being used by county health officials. Of the fatalities, 18 have come in the city of Sacramento, three in Elk Grove, two in Citrus Heights, one in Rancho Cordova and eight in unincorporated areas, the county says.
In an update at 10:10 a.m. Thursday, Sacramento County public health officials disclosed 26 additional cases but no new reported fatalities since the previous day’s update.
El Dorado County reports 35 cases, with no deaths yet observed through Thursday. County health officials said the number of active cases dropped to six, as one more person had recovered from the virus.
Placer County reports 130 cases and eight deaths as of Thursday. Only three new cases have been reported since Monday, but three deaths have also been announced this week. The county recently added an online dashboard for COVID-19 activity.
Yolo County has seen a large jump in confirmed cases, now at 125 compared with 37 about a week earlier. On Thursday afternoon, the county reported nine new cases, seven of which were in the Woodland area. Seven fatalities have been reported in Yolo, including the death of a resident at an undisclosed Woodland nursing facility reported earlier this week.
Worldwide numbers: Global death toll nearing 140,000
The United States continues to report by far the highest totals of confirmed coronavirus cases and COVID-19 deaths, at nearly 670,000 infected and just shy of 33,000 dead as of 5 p.m. Pacific time, according to the Johns Hopkins map.
Close to 235,000 of those infections and nearly 15,000 of the fatalities have come in New York state, the current epicenter of the virus. Each of those figures represents more than 10 percent of the worldwide totals. More than 11,000 have died in New York City alone as of Thursday afternoon, the Johns Hopkins map shows.
Within the U.S., another 3,500 people have died in New Jersey, nearly 2,000 in Michigan, over 1,100 in Massachusetts and Louisiana, and 1,000 in Illinois.
Italy as of Thursday afternoon has reported more than 22,600 coronavirus deaths among 168,000 infections, according to Johns Hopkins. Spain had more than 19,000 deaths and 185,000 confirmed cases; France has reported nearly 18,000 fatalities; and the United Kingdom surpassed 100,000 lab-positive cases and 13,700 dead.
What is COVID-19? How is the coronavirus spread?
Coronavirus is spread through contact between people within 6 feet of each other, especially through coughing and sneezing that expels respiratory droplets that land in the mouths or noses of people nearby. The CDC says it’s possible to catch the disease COVID-19 by touching something that has the virus on it, and then touching your own face, “but this is not thought to be the main way the virus spreads.”
Symptoms of the virus that causes COVID-19 include fever, cough and shortness of breath, which may occur two days to two weeks after exposure. Most develop only mild symptoms, but some people develop more severe symptoms, including pneumonia, which can be fatal. The disease is especially dangerous to the elderly and others with weaker immune systems.
This story was originally published April 16, 2020 at 7:51 AM.
